Since the sponsorship well is running dry for embattled -- and perhaps former -- NFL quarterback Michael Vick, may I suggest Vonage (NYSE:VG) as his next pitching hitching post?
Sure, it won't be as lucrative a gig as the ones that Vick once enjoyed with companies such as Nike (NYSE:NKE) and AirTran (NYSE:AAI). However, when I think of all of the Vonage ads with those "one smart decision among many, many stupid ones" taglines, the more I realize that Vick is starting to look like a natural.
You know about the dogfighting charges, of course. You're probably familiar with the incident at the Miami International Airport earlier this year, involving a water bottle with a secret compartment. And then just yesterday, a federal judge tightened Vick's release restrictions after Vick failed a drug test.
I'm not going to play the moral police or pretend to be a legal eagle on any of those counts. I want to talk about Royal Bank of Canada (NYSE:RY) and its decision this week to sue Vick, to rescind a $2.5 million loan they gave him back in January. The bank fears that a prison sentence and a prolonged NFL ban will render him unable to pay back the loan.
According to the story, Vick borrowed the money for real estate investments.
Wow.
Real estate? Really? What were you thinking, Michael Vick? We're in a prolonged housing slump. The inventory of unsold homes keeps rising, and sellers are forced to sit on money pits as condo flippers cash out at losses.
Now, I don't blame RBC for making the loan. Vick could have made the amount of the loan back over the course of a few weeks during the NFL season. I just don't get Vick's appetite for real estate. Sure, the market will bottom out eventually, but who wants to catch a falling knife at this point? Wait for the signs of a market recovery or risk slipping further along the downward spiral.
Those turnaround signs are clearly not visible yet. This week alone, you had Standard Pacific (NYSE:SPF) eliminate its dividend, while Lennar (NYSE:LEN) posted its worst quarter ever.
So what's the deal?
I see the "many, many stupid" decisions. Now show Vonage a smart one.
